Managing relationships between a configuration item and other CMDB instances

A CMDB instance represents a record in the BMC Remedyforce CMDB, which can be classified as a Configuration Item (CI), asset, or CI and asset. Each instance has configurable properties or attributes. You can attach supporting information about instances in the form of documents or URLs. You can also establish a relationship among instances in your environment. For example, you can establish a relationship among a monitor, keyboard, processor, and other items that make a computer system. Your staff members can also link CI and asset instances to change requests, incidents, problems, releases, tasks, and knowledge articles.

Depending on the CI and asset management configurations, CIs and assets in the Remedyforce CMDB affect each other as follows:

• If both CI and IT asset management are enabled, CIs and assets interrelate and affect one another. CI to CI, CI to asset, asset to asset, and asset to CI relationships exist.
• If only CI management is enabled, only CIs interrelate and affect one another. CI to CI relationships exist.
• If only asset management is enabled, only assets interrelate and affect one another. Asset to asset relationships exist.

Storing these relationships in the BMC Remedyforce CMDB enables you to see how the CMDB instances interrelate and affect one another. The use of relationships is a feature that differentiates between a CMDB and an asset store.

Relationships can be simple, such as a disk drive being a component of a computer system, or more complex. Relationships exist not only between physical CIs and assets, but also between logical and conceptual CIs and assets, such as the software instances and service instance. Relationship data makes the CMDB a powerful decision support tool. Understanding the dependencies and other relationships among your CIs and assets can tell you how upgrading Processor A can improve Laptop B's performance, or which services are affected if Router C failed. Most downtime is caused by issues stemming from configuration changes. Accurate relationship information can help you prevent those issues.

The following topics are provided:

To create a relationship between a CI and other CIs and assets

1. Click the Remedyforce CMDB tab.
   You can view classes and manage CIs and assets of a selected class on Remedyforce CMDB. This will be based on the CI and IT asset management configurations and the Remedyforce CMDB permissions assigned to you. For more information, see Overview of the Remedyforce CMDB tab.
   

   Note

   If you do not have the Create, Edit, and Delete permissions on the class of an asset, the New and Save toolbar icons on the Remedyforce CMDB tab are disabled.

2. In the left pane, perform one of the following actions:

   • If both CI and IT asset management are enabled, click on the CI or All tab on the left pane of Remedyforce CMDB, and select the class whose asset relationships you want to manage.
     When you are on the All tab, in the Tile and List views, class names are followed by the class type (for example, CI, Asset, and CI and Asset), and in the Tree view the class type is displayed as a tooltip.

   • If only CI management is enabled, select the class whose asset relationships you want to manage.

3. In the right pane, select the CI whose relationships you want to manage. You can use column filtering feature to sort and select. See Overview of the Remedyforce CMDB tab.
   

4. Once you select, click Edit.
5. In the Instance Editor, click the Relationships tab.

6. Perform one of the following actions:

   • To create a new relationship, click the New button.
   • To edit an existing relationship, select that relationship from the Relationships list view, and click Edit.
   • To delete an existing relationship, select that relationship from the Relationships list view, and click Delete. It will be deleted from the list.
     
     

7. For a new relationship, click the Select CMDB Instance button and perform the following actions in the Select From Class Instances window.

   Note

   The Select CMDB Instance button is not available when you edit an existing relationship. It is available only while creating a new one.

   1. In the left pane, select the class whose CI or asset you want to relate to the current CI.

      Note

      In the Select From Class Instances window, the CI, Asset, and All tabs are displayed only when both CI management and IT asset management are enabled, and you have at least Read-Only access to CI Management View and Asset Management View. When only CI management is enabled, only CI classes are displayed in the left pane. Similarly, when only asset management is enabled, only asset classes are displayed in the left pane.

   2. In the right pane, select the CI or asset that you want to relate to the current CI. You can use column filtering feature to sort and select. See Overview of the Remedyforce CMDB tab. 

   3. Click Select.

8. In the Relationship Name field, type a unique alphanumeric identifier that you want to assign to the current relationship.
   If you did not specify a name in the Relationship Name field, the field is populated with a name in the following format:
   <Value of Instance Name field on left side> - <Value of Instance Name field on right side>
   

   For example, if the value in the Instance Name field on the left side is Instance Offering and the value in the Instance Name field on the right side is Description, the Relationship Name field is populated as Instance Offering - Description.

9. In the Description field, type a description of this relationship.

10. (Optional) To mark this relationship as deleted, select the Mark As Deleted check box at the bottom of the form. 

    Note

    If the Mark As Deleted check box is selected, the relationships are only shown in the Relationship list views, but not in lookups, Impact Analysis window, or the CMDB Explorer.

11. From the Relationship Type drop-down list, select the type of the relationship.
12. From the Direction list, select the direction arrow that is updated between the two icons.
    When you select the Source-destination or Destination-Source value in the Relationship Type list, the direction arrow is populated.
13. (Optional) To view the relationships in CMDB Explorer, click the CMDB Explorer icon.
14. Click Save.
15. To return to the Instance Editor, click Back.
    The relationship that you have created appears in the Relationships list view of the Relationships tab.
16. To return to the CMDB Manager, click Back.

To navigate to the Instance Editor of related CIs and assets

From the Instance Editor of a CI, you can navigate to the Instance Editor of its related CIs and assets.

1. On the Instance Editor of the CI, click the Relationships tab.

2. In the Instance Name column, click the CI or asset that you want to open.
   The related CI or asset is displayed on the Attributes tab of the Instance Editor.

   Note

   The Instance Type column indicates if the related instance is a CI, Asset, or CI/Asset.

To launch CMDB Explorer from the Instance Editor

From the Instance Editor of the CI, click the CMDB Explorer icon to launch the CMDB Explorer of the CI. For more information, see Working with the CMDB Explorer.

Related topics

Overview of the Remedyforce CMDB tab